HAMILTON — At some point after Corey Ressler took the “street cocktail” that claimed his life, somebody used his cell phone to call 911.

They hung up before the call connected.

Corey’s father, Paul Ressler, believes whoever it was that who tried to make that lifesaving call had second thoughts about exposing himself or herself to possible prosecution for drug offenses.

“I spoke to his roommate and, although he wouldn’t tell me this, he led me to believe that everybody was afraid to call for an EMT or the police because they were afraid they were going to get arrested,” Ressler said.

Ressler’s son died in the early hours of July 14, 2010, joining the many other victims of accidental drug overdoses, which are now the leading cause of accidental death in New Jersey. Paul Ressler has worked tirelessly to help put a dent in that statistic.

He’s spent much of the last year serving on the Governor’s Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse and the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, promoting the law he wishes was around when his son needed it two years ago.

It’s called the Good Samaritan Emergency Response Act and it’s designed to encourage drug users to call 911 if they witness an overdose, themselves included, by protecting them from legal consequences.

Under the bill, those who seek medical assistance would be protected from arrest, charge, prosecution or conviction related to possession or use of a controlled dangerous substance found by first responders.

Despite overwhelming support in both houses of the state Legislature, Gov. Chris Christie vetoed the bill earlier this month over concerns that it could give drug dealers a “free pass.”

Ressler’s initial reaction?

“He’s totally wrong, and I say that in a nice way,” he said. “He is so wrong about this that it sickens me. None of those people with Corey were drug dealers. They were all his friends, his good friends, except they used together. That’s why I think the governor made a huge mistake.”

NO 'FREE PASS'

The governor has generally been open to addiction-treatment options, Ressler said.
He was proud when Christie announced the expansion of the state’s drug court program, which puts nonviolent offenders into rehab rather than prison, but was deeply confused when Christie slapped down the Samaritan bill with a conditional veto that called for a lot more study.

“This is totally opposite of where he’s headed,” Ressler said. “If you’re not going to put somebody in jail when they get arrested for a nonviolent crime, why would you arrest someone if they save someone’s life?”

As part of his veto, Christie directed the state criminal justice department to conduct an 18-month investigation on overdose reporting.

But for a bill that places lives above the law, an 18-month delay could mean thousands more fatalities, Ressler said.

“There’s no research that needs to be done. None at all,” he said. “How many lives have to be lost before this bill gets passed, if he doesn’t veto it totally?”

Christie explained his veto during an Oct. 11 Mount Laurel town hall, noting that the bill could give a “free pass” to drug dealers and suppliers.

“What I’m not willing to do is give people who commit harms on other people a free pass just because they picked up a telephone and called. I’m not going to do that,” Christie said. “It doesn’t make any sense to me to allow somebody who’s supplying drugs to a kid to watch them take the drugs and begin to overdose and to have them get off the hook for profiting from that death just because they picked up their cellphone and they made a phone call.”

But Christie’s concerns are misguided, legislative supporters of the bill said.

“The bill does not provide immunity from distribution,” Assemblyman Dan Benson (D-Hamilton) said. “That person, if he was a dealer, could still be charged with that. ... This is really meant for the average drug user, who’s with a friend, who’s seeing somebody overdose and may be afraid to call 911 because of the legal implications,” Benson said.

Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Trenton), a municipal prosecutor, said the Samaritan bill would not only prevent overdose deaths, but also point addicts towards rehabilitation.

“Too many people are left at the curb to fend for themselves after drug abuse,” Gusciora said. “I think the main goal of it should be to get more people into drug treatment and have those options available. I’ll probably work with the governor to not only save some of these people but also get them into rehabilitation.”

SUCCESSFUL MODELS

Hamilton Councilman Kevin Meara, whose son also died of a drug overdose and who is a co-founder of a nonprofit counseling program for addicts, said the state should not only adopt the Samaritan Act but initiate other forms of legislation that have proven successful elsewhere.

“We understand what this law can do and that’s why we’re in favor of seeing it pass,” said Meara, who also serves on the Governor’s Council for Alcohol and Drug Abuse.

He said New Jersey could consider adopting something similar to the Florida Mental Health Act, which allows up to 72 hours of involuntary examination of any person deemed a threat to himself, herself or others.

“Usually in that time period, where they need to detox, they can just walk out of the hospital,” Meara said. “This would allow for someone in throes of addiction to be held long enough so you can talk some sense into them.”

Similarly, Meara said, the Legislature should look at Florida’s Marchman Act, which allows law enforcement or medical personnel or family members to file for involuntary substance abuse evaluation or treatment.

As legislators discuss what to do next, Ressler has called Christie’s aides nearly every day since the Samaritan bill was first sent to the governor.

Even in the worst of circumstances, the law would result in life-saving decisions.
“That’s all there is,” he said. “Even if a drug dealer calls an EMT and saves a life, well, isn’t that good? From my perspective, that’s only good. A life has been saved.”